Liking Alan the Pest
by Amphia234
Summary: Dawn likes Alan Gray. Alan likes her back. Simple, right? Not. Because of her crush, Dawn is in the school play, ditching her friends, and being miserable as she tries to keep it secret from them. What is she going to do?


**This is my second story for the Babysitters Club, please enjoy! (Also, please rate and review!)**

I was sick. I absolutely _hated_ being sick and the worst part about this time was that I didn't even know _how_ I had gotten sick. OK, fine, I _do_ know how but it still annoys me.

I was at lunch just calmly eating my salad as my best friends chatted away. Stacey and Claudia were talking about boys (as usual) and Kristy was explaining to Mary Anne how her softball team, Kristy's Krushers, was going to beat the heck out of her rival (and sort-of boyfriend) Bart's Bashers. Anyway, Cokie Mason and her partner-in-crime, Grace Blume, came up to our table and begin blah-blah-blahing about how she was going to get the lead lady in the school play, Romeo and Juliet.

"Don't you dare try out 'cause I'll get the part for sure." She looked at us like we were something from the bottom of her shoe "Right Grace?"

"Yeah!" her friend repeated. Frankly, I think she was just intimidated and didn't want competition.

When she saw that she was getting no response from us she snapped her fingers "Let's go—" but she was interrupted by Grace going:

"A-a-achoo!" she sneezed right onto me _and_ my salad—right as I was taking a bite. I almost threw up in my mouth and I spit out the piece of cabbage I was chewing. Grace and Cokie seemed to leave in a hurry after that.

"Ew," I groaned as my friends gave me a pitiful look

#

I sneezed as my step-sister Mary Anne came into my room with a box of tissues.  
"Bless you, Dawn," she smiled "I brought you some tissues." Mary Anne was the best.

"Danks." My nose was very stuffed

"I have some news."

"But bews?"

"Well you know how Alan Gray and I are working on that English assignment together?" she looked up nervously. I nodded "and how he's downstairs right now waiting for me?"

"But!?" I nearly jumped out of bed. Alan was really that much of a pest.

"And how I forgot that I had to babysit Charlotte Johansson because I was taking care of you?"

I coughed "Bon't guild drip be, Bary Ann."

But she continued anyway "And finally how mom is supposed to drop him at his house but got a pop-up meeting and now he has to stay here?"

My eyes widened "Are boo sayee dat hees taying ear?"

"Well… yeah… I'll warn him not to go to your room and I have to go because the charge is in two minutes—bye!" she ran out the door

"Bary Ann!" I sighed but then I heard muffled voices:

"Don't go to her room, you hear?" Mary Anne was talking to Alan

"I won't, I won't. Sheesh, Mary Anne."

"Good, there's food in the fridge and you can watch TV." I heard the door slam which meant that I was home alone with Alan Gray the Pest (Richard, my step-dad, was also at work).

"Brate." I tried to fall asleep until I heard footsteps. I panicked and tried to hide under the covers. Was Alan trying to find me? I heard door-after-door slam until mine opened. Sure enough, it was Alan. When he saw me, he grinned.

"Why, hello there." Just like him, _never_ listening to instructions.

"Bo away." I tried to glare but my eyes sort of drooped

He entered my room and closed the door behind him "What? I'm bored. You're bored. Let's entertain ourselves." I rolled my eyes "Let's play twenty questions. I'll ask first."

"Bo."

He ignored me "First question… do you like me?"

I stared at him to see if he was serious but he just kept staring back at me "But! Bo!" But when I said it, I felt… guilty. I sneezed again and dove for my tissue box.

"Second, if I tried to look nice, would you like me more?" I finally managed to glare at him

"Honesdly, if boo looked nither I bould thill thing yoore annoying."

"If I stopped being such a pest?"

I considered this "Bell, thoo bight become moore bearable."

"If I sat with you guys at lunch and made you all laugh?"

"Bine."

"What do you mean by 'fine'?"

"I thaid, bine, like, I bould like boo moore."

"Really? If I became all of these things, would you go with me to the Spring Dance?" I stared at him, shocked. He wanted to ask me? Why was he being so open about this? _Maybe one of his friends dared him to ask me or something._ Well, I was not going to satisfy his intentions.

"Bo." I said firmly "Boo'd be nice but I thill wouldn'td like boo that bay." I wished that Alan was not doing this on a dare. I might have considered his proposal longer.

He looked disappointed "Really? After all these changes I would have made?"

"Thes," I coughed "why thoo boo care anyway? Boo like Krisdy."

"No, I mean—never mind." He got up from my bed which I hadn't even realized he'd been sitting on. I watched Alan as he left. The guilty feeling lingered.

#

 _Brring!_

It was Monday morning, the beginning of school. I had recovered from my sickness (although at times I still felt rotten) and I actually hadn't missed any school work. Yay! But, I couldn't forget the "20 Questions" with Alan so I was a bit distracted most of the day.

After Alan had left my room I sort of zoned out and just kept thinking until Mary Anne and my mom came back—which was 2 hours by the way—to take Alan home. Mary Anne said he looked really glum and I told her that he'd come into my room. She asked what happened but I didn't say, I didn't want to tell anyone—yet.

Back to Earth, I grabbed my bag and raced to catch up with my friends who had impatiently begun going to class without me. "Wait up!" They turned and laughed.

"Oh, Dawn." Kristy chuckled

"What? You guys are impatient."

Claudia joined in "We sure are but can you blame us? We only have five minutes in between classes to get ready for the next. School is just stupid."

"School is _not_ stupid, Claudia." Stacey interjected "Math is great."

Kristy laughed "Easy for _you_ to say."

"You're a Math whiz!" I added

Stacey shrugged "fine, fine…"

We giggled as we entered the class, one by one but I was dragged back by Mary Anne who had been walking behind us.

"Dawn…"

"Yes?"

"Could you tell me what happened with Alan?"

My heart lurched, I wasn't really sure whether to tell her or not "At lunch time, not now."

Her cheeks tinted pink "Oh yeah…we have class. Sorry, I couldn't stop thinking about it yesterday."

"It's fine, let's just get to class." I smiled at her as we entered the classroom, three minutes late.

#

After our first four periods, we had lunch. I had been really nervous about talking to Mary Anne but the time had come. I cracked my knuckles and imagined myself in an action movie, ready to face the bad guy—the truth.

I got into the lunch line, anxiously, and took the Salad Surprise (don't ask me what the surprise is). After, I sat down at an empty table so Mary Anne and I could talk privately.

"Hey Dawn!" I jumped and saw Mary Anne sit in the seat in front of me

"Hi…" I waved slightly

"OK," she said getting down to business "what happened?"

"Well, Alancameintomyroomandweplayedtwentyquestions." I let out a breath

Her eyes bulged in bewilderment "What?" everyone looked at her and she blushed

I inhaled deeply "Alan came into my room and we played twenty questions."

"What did he ask you?"

"Uh…" I tried to recall what happened "he asked me things about changing his personality and how I would react to it."

Mary Anne frowned "Really? Why?"

"I think he wanted to know if I would like him if he changed." I was getting nervous

"Why?"

"So he could ask me out, I think?" my voice was squeaky

"What?!" Everyone stared at us again but Mary Anne ignored them

"I don't know, I told him that I wouldn't like him because I think he asked me this stuff on a dare but I feel weird. Guilty I guess. He was so disappointed when I said no."

"Do you feel guilty because… because you lied?"

"No! I didn't lie! What would I have lied about?"

Mary Anne smiled "Maybe you lied about not going out with him if he changed."

"That's ridiculous!" I stared at her incredulously

"Not really. I mean, you like him. He probably likes you."

"I do NOT like Alan Gray!" I shouted

"Could you guys, like, BE QUIET!" Cokie was glaring at us icily, as were her friends

I became so distressed that I stood up from the table. I stomped to the trash can and dumped my tray. Then I realized that I had wasted a good salad. _Dawn, what is wrong with you?_ I burst into tears and ran out of the cafeteria.

#

I was sitting against my locker and trying to comprehend everything that had happened. I had burst into tears in front of everyone in my grade. How humiliating.

Mary Anne was wrong though. I didn't like Alan Gray. He was a pest. I didn't like pests. Simple.

Not really.

I decided to stop whining and feeling sorry for myself so I stood up. I opened my locker to get my textbooks until a note fell out.

"What's this?" I leaned down and grabbed the note. _Is this something I wrote?_ I began reading it aloud. "Hey Dawn, it's me Alan." I rolled my eyes as I imagined Alan's voice reading it out. He was so annoying. "I was wondering if you could meet me after school on the playground." _Why does he want to see me?_

"I'll go." I said "But it better not be something stupid. Alan." I folded the note and grabbed my books.

#

After school, I told Mary Anne that I couldn't walk with her home. She asked why so now I'm in the play, apparently.

"Ready to go, Dawn?"

"No, I have to stay behind. Go home without me."

"Why? Are you joining the play or something? Auditions start today."

"Uh…" I needed an excuse "yeah! I wanna try out for uh… Juliet!"

"Really? That's great! You'd be perfect for the part!"

"Thanks!"

"OK, bye!" Mary Anne seemed excited as she left

"What have I gotten myself into?" I groaned as I went to the playground

"Dawn? You came?" I spun on my heel

"Alan?"

"Yeah, you got the note hunh?" he looked… scared

"Yep. What did you want to tell me? And it better not be something stupid."

"It won't be… hopefully… anyway—"

"Hopefully?" I crossed my arms

"Well I just wanted to tell you that I… about yesterday…"

"About the twenty questions?" I smiled despite myself

"Yeah. The reason I asked you those things was because I wanted to see if you would like me more if I changed." He shrugged

"Why do you care whether I like you or not?" I was grinning. _Stop grinning!_

"Because I like you…"

"I thought you liked Kristy." I said, playing hard to get. _Why are you playing hard to get? You don't even want him to get you!_

"I made it up because I wasn't ready to tell you." I could see that his cheeks were slightly tinted. Was he blushing?

"Oh…" I blushed profusely. _What is wrong with you?_ "I…"

After some time we just stood opposite each other. Silent. I was about to say something sly until I was interrupted—

By a kiss.

It had just happened. Alan had walked to me, cupped my cheeks and kissed me softly. It was sweet, and slow, and sent nice tingles all over my body. After, he just kept grinning at me and I kept grinning at him and it was… I don't know…

"I've been wanting to do that for a while."

I giggled "Really?"

He nodded and I laughed. Then we gazed at each other again.

Mary Anne was right, I definitely liked Alan Gray.

 **What do you guys think? Please review and tell me any suggestions you have!**

 **Amphia234**


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